One video released on Monday features Koo asking, “What kind of service attitude is considered good enough these days?”, before being served by a shoe shop worker who takes the initiative to give him an alternative size that fits him better.

“Going the extra mile is the best way to show hospitality,” Koo concludes.

It echoes a similar government campaign from 2002 involving superstar Andy Lau Tak-wah, which features a series of television adverts of him delivering his famous line, “Such attitudes in service are not enough these days,” as scenes of grumbling service workers are replaced with them smiling and chatting with customers.

Yeung noted there was no short-term measure of success for the scheme and that the goal was for everyone to “feel the change” in the long run when out shopping or dining.

“We launched the campaign for several reasons. First is that we resumed cross-border travel last year. Before that, the sector was dormant for three years,” he said.

Hong Kong recorded 34 million visitors in 2023, around half the number of pre-pandemic 2018, while the first-quarter recovery this year was 72 per cent compared with the same period six years ago.

Shifting patterns in tourism also meant many visitors were venturing into non-traditional tourist locations, and some of the service providers there might need “reminders” as they had been used to serving just locals in the past, Yeung said.

He also noted some cases of bad service providers had gained traction on social media, triggering concerns about Hong Kong as a visitor-friendly destination.

A search on popular mainland social media platform Xiaohongshu produces hundreds of results from tourists complaining about their bad experiences while travelling to Hong Kong, especially when they visit local-style diners, or cha chaan teng.

“In Hong Kong, it’s like you pay to have a hard time,” one post said.

Others called on visitors to understand this was the culture of the city, in which efficiency was extremely important.

Hong Kong athletes turned personalities Kevin Chu Kam-yin and Tony Wu Tsz-tung were also recruited to appear in the new video clips as part of the effort.

Meanwhile, the city’s taxi industry will roll out a three-month courtesy drive on June 5 to improve its reputation, by deploying ambassadors to cab ranks, including those at the airport and border checkpoints, to encourage drivers to be polite to passengers.

Four to six ambassadors will visit taxi ranks across the city every Tuesday and Thursday between June 11 and August 29, to distribute pamphlets and souvenirs to cabbies.

Official statistics showed that taxi service complaints and suggestions were 52.8 per cent higher in 2023 at 11,096 from 2022, with cab drivers refusing a hire and overcharging passengers among the top complaints.

The Hong Kong Taxi Council said the initiative was more about educating drivers and that measuring its success would be challenging.

Chow Kwok-keung, chairman of the Hong Kong Taxi and Public Light Bus Association, said the trade was suffering from “low morale” due to negative press in recent years.

While he said the industry was happy to coordinate with the government’s campaign, he also blamed some of their frustrations on the rise of unlicensed ride-hailing services.

“Over the last decade, the illegal activities have not been taken away, while the legitimate drivers like us are subject to more and more regulations and control,” he said.

Association of Restaurant Managers’ vice-president Jonathan Leung Chun said he believed the government campaign would be beneficial to the food and drink industry, adding that tackling the manpower crunch would also help.

“A lot of staff members want to do well, but the environment and the lack of manpower means their performance is hindered. If the concept is so clearly laid out, and when manpower is replenished, we should be able to see improvements,” he added.

Leung said that part of the misunderstanding could also be cultural, with Hong Kong workers having a tendency to be more direct, which might be interpreted as being impolite.

In a related move, the Education Bureau issued a circular to remind all schools to plan and promote learning activities related to the theme of “courtesy”